One problem I'm running into as a freelance journalist is identifying myself as such and being taken seriously by sources. Or getting callbacks. As you may already know, I have a story pitch on Spot.us, a Web site where people donate money to have a story done. One story I'm working on is a follow-up to the oil spill in the San Francisco Bay a year ago. When asked what news organization I represent, I respond that I'm a freelancer working for Spot.us and that my story may be picked up by newspapers but will most certainly be on the Spot.us Web site and other Web sites. So this morning I make a few calls and after the source checked out the Web site, I could almost hear her laughing in her head about who I represent and how the official I'm trying to reach may not want to talk to me because of his limited time and because I'm from a startup Internet site. But, she said, I could talk to her (the public information officer), which is OK but not like going straight to the source. Frustrating.
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